How I spent my weekend

After more than a couple weeks of cramps, lethargy and diarrhea -- with no improvement after a doctor's visit -- Tati finally ended up in the hospital all weekend with an extremely inflamed colon. As it turns out, was caused by an antibiotics-resistant bacteria called Clostridium difficile that's made headlines in recent weeks. Basically, this little bug is usually a normal part of the digestive system. But it can go out of control in people being treated by common antibiotics. The medicines kill off all the competing bacteria, leaving the Clostridium difficile free to thrive uncontested in the gut.

The funny thing is, just a few days ago I was just reading this article to Andrea, wondering aloud whether it's what Tati had. She was already taking antibiotics for other reasons when she arrived here. And her symptoms were almost exactly the same as the woman mentioned in the opening paragraph.

But because Tati wasn't taking the specific antibiotics mentioned in the article (fluoroquinolones), I dismissed it and didn't think to ask the doctor later.

The good news: we now know what it is.
The bad news: this can be very tough to treat.

Moral of the story? Don't be afraid to ask the doctor about something you read on the Internet. Learning about health, disease and medicine doesn't make you a hypochondriac.